IAC (Intercountry Adoption Centre) is joining the Coram Group of children’s charities to become Coram IAC from 1 July 2023, IAC and Coram have announced today.
Coram CEO Dr Carol Homden with Irene Levine who will be Managing Director of Coram IAC
As part of the Coram Group, IAC, the UK’s only dedicated international adoption agency, will remain an independently registered charity. It will continue its core programme of preparing, assessing and supporting prospective adopters to adopt a child into the UK where the relevant government has agreed that to be in their best interest.
Each year, IAC receives over 2,500 new enquiries, 1,000 follow-up enquiries and then goes on to work with over 50 new families, supporting them through the process.
Through the amalgamation with Coram, IAC can maximise its reach and impact by coming together with a charity group with a complementary mission and vision. Coram is the UK’s oldest children’s charity and is a leader in adoption and permanence, with over 50 years’ experience running a voluntary adoption agency, rated Outstanding by Ofsted.
Satwinder Sandhu, CEO of IAC, said: “The pandemic and costs of living crisis have been hugely challenging for charities to weather, so the IAC Board and Leadership Team’s strategic planning has focussed on our long-term sustainability and impact. We believe that joining the Coram Group is a fantastic, and unique, opportunity for the charity to focus on our service delivery and consolidate what we have spent 26 years building.
“The alignment of our vision and values with Coram, as well as the benefit of the knowledge and expertise that exists within the group, is what will support Coram IAC to continue to deliver outstanding services to the children who need us. The entire workforce is very much looking forward to our future within the Coram Group.”
Dr Carol Homden, CEO of Coram, said: “Coram is dedicated to creating better chances for children and ensuring all children have a loving home no matter where they live, a mission shared by IAC. By forming Coram IAC, we will be able to extend our impact, working together to transform the lives of more vulnerable children across the world who – because of their circumstances – need a loving home in the UK. We look forward to welcoming the team into the Coram Group.”
About IAC
IAC was founded in 1997 to ensure that those choosing to adopt from abroad had access to the right information and services, and that children being matched with British families would be placed in safe, loving and supported homes.
IAC believes that children belong in families, and so wherever possible vulnerable children needing alternative care should be supported to thrive through adoption. We work with local authorities, and government departments here in England and abroad, to ensure that prospective adopters are screened, prepared, assessed and supported. IAC is judged to be outstanding by Ofsted.
About Coram
Coram is the UK’s oldest children’s charity, supporting children to have the best possible chance in life since 1739. We work as a group of specialist organisations helping more than a million children, young people, families and professionals every year.
We support children and young people from their earliest days to independence, creating a change that lasts a lifetime. We help build their confidence; we help them to develop skills; we uphold their rights, we support practitioners in the areas of fostering and adoption and we find loving adoptive families for the most vulnerable children.
We work in over 2,000 schools supporting nearly half a million children, run London’s largest Regional Adoption Agency and provide free legal advice for thousands of children and families who need it every year.
Notes
- IAC’s services will remain dedicated to international adoption in the UK where this is agreed to be in the best interests of the child in line with the 1993 Hague Convention and there will be no change for applicants, adopters and their children
- IAC’s outbound permanence service will be transferred to CoramBAAF (another organisation within the Coram Group) and continue to provide expert consultancy and advice to local authority teams who are seeking to place children in care with family members in other countries
- IAC’s current CEO, Satwinder Sandhu will leave the organisation at the end of July to become the new CEO of CVAA. The current Director of Operations, Irene Levine, will be Managing Director of Coram IAC